1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to dynamic web page generation, and more specifically, relates to methods for dynamically updating or supplementing web pages with content.
2. Description of the Related Art
With the evolution of standard languages and protocols for implementing web services and related technologies, it has become common for web site operators to incorporate dynamic content into their web pages. In many cases, the dynamic content is retrieved from external web services or applications that are freely accessible via the Internet. Examples of types of dynamic content that are available via existing web services include driving directions, weather information, and product descriptions and reviews.
Some web sites provide users with the ability to interact with a service component without having to navigate away from a currently-loaded web page. For example, a web page may include a form for checking flight information made available via a web service of an airline. When a user enters a flight number into this form and selects the “submit” button, the user's browser makes a call to this web service, which returns the requested information via an XML (Extensible Markup Language) packet. The browser then uses this packet to update an area of the page with the requested flight information.
Although web sites exist that allow users to request and view content without navigating away from the current web pages (as in the example above), the types of user interactions that are possible from within the web page are typically very limited. In addition, the skills needed to add such interactive functionality are beyond the skill sets of many web site operators. For instance, to add calls to a web service from a web page, the web site operator generally must be knowledgeable of such technologies as XML, JavaScript, and style sheets. This problem pertains to some, but not all, of the disclosed embodiments.